Annual Inflation Eases In OECD Countries- November 2010

The following article from the Organization for Economic Development (OECD), shows a comparison of the inflation rates of several of the major countries. From it, we can see how the U.S. compares. Typically U.S. energy prices are lower than Euro areas and currently energy prices are rising faster there than in the U.S. as well (as we can see from the first chart). Overall inflation is also higher in other OECD countries than in the United States. The average for all OECD countries for all items is 1.8% while the inflation rate for the US was only 1.1%. It takes a few weeks longer for the OECD to compile the data so even though the November numbers were released in mid-December the composite for all OECD countries for November is released in early January. Tim McMahon~editor

Consumer prices in the OECD area1 rose by 1.8% in the year to November 2010, down from 1.9% in October. This easing in the rate of inflation mainly reflected slower growth in energy prices, which increased by 5.4% in November, compared with 6.6% in October. Food prices rose by 2.7% in November, up from 2.6% in October.

Excluding food and energy, consumer prices rose by 1.2 % in November compared with 1.1% in October.

Consumer prices rose 3.3% in the year to November in the United Kingdom, a slight increase from the 3.2% annual rise in October. In Germany, prices rose 1.5%, slightly above the 1.3% rate in October. Inflation remained stable in Italy and France (at 1.7% and 1.6% respectively), but declined to an annual rate of 2.0% in Canada (from 2.4% in October). Inflation fell to 1.1% in the United States (compared with 1.2% in October) and was 0.1% in Japan (compared with 0.2% in October). Euro area annual inflation (HICP) remained stable at 1.9% in November.

Consumer prices in the OECD area rose by 0.1% in November compared with the previous month. They rose by 0.3% in the United Kingdom, and by 0.1% in Canada, France, and Germany; they remained stable inthe United States and Italy;and they fell by 0.3% in Japan.

In the following table you can see the comparison of the annual inflation rate in several OECD countries.